RP3 Webinar Series:

System ImprovementOverview of the RP3 System Improvement Checklist

Friday, May 9, 20141:00pm – 2:00 pm

Staff & Presenter for this Call

• Phillip SolomonEnergy Services Director, City of St. George

• Rene FlemingWater & Energy Services Conservation Coordinator, City of St. George

What is RP3?• Reliable Public Power Provider

(RP3) program– Peer-evaluation of your utility’s reliability,

safety, work force development, and system improvement

• Two main goals:1. Help public power perform a utility

operational self-check by benchmarking on a national level

2. National recognition of the excellent service you provide to – customers, your community leaders, state and federal regulatory agencies, and members of Congress

Reliability; 25%

Safety; 25%Work Force De-velopment; 25%

System Im-provement; 25%

Review Panel• 2 – Large utilities• 2 – Medium utilities• 2 – Small utilities• 1 – JAA/SA• 1 – Reliability Representative• 1 – Safety Representative• 1 – System Improvement Representative• 2 – Human Resources Representatives• 2 – T&D Officers• 2 – Safety Officers• 2 – System Planning Officers

Total = 18 member Review Panel of

your peers

System Improvement – 25%Criteria

Area Section Question Subject of QuestionMaximum

Point Value

A – Research & Development

A1Membership and Participation in an R&D Program

3

B1Implementing Programs for Energy Conservation and Efficient Processes

3

B2Education and Outreach for Energy Conservation or Energy Efficiency Programs

3

C1 System Maintenance 4C2 System Losses 3

C3Near-Term Capital and O&M Projects 5

C4 Planning Study 4

System Improvement

25%

B – Energy Conservation and

DSM

C – System Maintenance and

Betterment

Checklist Walkthrough

Checklist WalkthroughA – Research & Development

1. Is your utility a member of a research and development program?

Yes No

If yes, please identify the specific type of program that your utility participates in and attach proof of membership (with the exception of DEED members).

NOTE: A utility should participate in a national R&D program.

Our utility is a member of APPA’s R&D program, DEED Our utility is a member of EPRI’s R&D program Our utility is a member of our state or regional R&D program

Please provide program name: Other

If other, describe in detail the research and development program your utility participates in (attach additional page if more space is needed):

Checklist WalkthroughIf yes, please indicate how your utility participates in research and development program(s). Check all that apply:

Currently involved in grants/scholarships (submit summary of project)

Applied for grants/scholarships in past 3 years Review of relevant research projects conducted by other

utilities, for application to projects your utility is conducting (for example, DEED Project Database, DEED-published documents, or EPRI research papers)

Use of software or technology developed by a utility research group (for example, GridLAB-D)

Other (please explain)

Location of attachment(s): (n/a if no additional information needed)

Question Continued:

Checklist WalkthroughB – Energy Conservation and DSM

1. Has your utility implemented any energy conservation, efficiency, demand side distributed management processes or programs?

Yes No

If yes, include a description of the key features of your utility’s program(s) below (attach additional page(s) if more space is needed):

If yes, how does your utility measure or verify the efficacy of its energy conservation/efficiency/DSM programs? Please describe in detail how your utility measures or verifies the success of its programs below (attach additional page(s) if more space is needed):

Location of attachment(s): (n/a if no additional information needed)

Checklist Walkthrough

1. Does your utility/city provide education outreach to the public, including policymakers, about its energy conservation and/or energy efficiency programs?

Yes No

If yes, describe in detail how your utility/city provides education outreach below (attach additional page(s) if more space is needed):

Location of attachment(s): (n/a if no additional information needed)

2. Does your utility/city provide education outreach to the public, including policymakers, about its energy conservation and/or energy efficiency programs?

Checklist WalkthroughC – System Maintenance and Betterment

1. System Maintenance:

Does your utility have and maintain records of all plant assets requiring maintenance, including a documented maintenance and inspection schedule?

Yes No

If yes, in the chart below please provide the schedule for maintenance/inspection for all plant assets requiring maintenance on your system

NOTE: Inspections are not limited to the list of examples provided in the chart below

Checklist WalkthroughAsset Requiring Maintenance Schedule for Maintenance/Inspection

(e.g., yearly, every 10 years, daily, N/A)

EXAMPLE: Meter testing EXAMPLE: Yearly

EXAMPLE: Cable testing EXAMPLE: N/A

Cable testing  

Capacitor switch testing  

Control house  

Crossarm/Insulator testing/inspections  

Cut-out testing/inspections  

Instrument transformer verification  

Meter testing  

Pedestal inspections (single phase)  

Pole testing  

Relay testing  

Substation battery testing/inspection  

Substation switch testing  

Substation transformer testing/inspections  

Transformer inspections (3-phase)  

Tree trimming  

Other (please list or include attachment:      )  

If yes, please provide a representative sample of maintenance or inspection records for assets identified above.

Location of attachment(s): (n/a if no additional information needed)

Checklist Walkthrough1. System Losses:

Does your utility have any processes/programs in place that address overall system loss?

Yes No

If yes, what are your utility’s current system losses? %

NOTE: Typical range is between 3-8%

If yes, check the applicable method(s) used to lower or maintain low system losses. Check all that apply:

Operations improvement (balancing loads and phases) Adding parallel feeders to reduce loading VAR (Reactive Power) management (capacitors, equipment

upgrades) Distribution transformer management (e.g., analysis/upgrade,

transformer load management to reduce losses, multiple transformers versus single transformer based on system analysis, voltage management, etc.)

Theft prevention Calculate and consider losses in improvement decisions Voltage upgrade Conductor upgrade Other

If other, describe in detail (attach separate sheet(s), if needed):

Location of attachment(s): (n/a if no additional information needed)

2. System Losses: Does your utility have any processes/programs in place that address overall system loss?

Checklist Walkthrough

1. System Losses: Does your utility have any processes/programs in place that address overall system loss?

Yes No

If yes, what are your utility’s current system losses? %

NOTE: Typical range is between 3-8%

If yes, check the applicable method(s) used to lower or maintain low system losses. Check all that apply:

Operations improvement (balancing loads and phases) Adding parallel feeders to reduce loading VAR (Reactive Power) management (capacitors, equipment

upgrades) Distribution transformer management (e.g., analysis/upgrade,

transformer load management to reduce losses, multiple transformers versus single transformer based on system analysis, voltage management, etc.)

Theft prevention Calculate and consider losses in improvement decisions Voltage upgrade Conductor upgrade Other

If other, describe in detail (attach separate sheet(s), if needed):

Location of attachment(s): (n/a if no additional information needed)

Question Continued:

Checklist Walkthrough1. Near-Term Capital and O&M Projects:

Please provide a detailed description of projects that your utility has recently completed or will be working on in the near term (with a focus on the past two years and the next two years) as a way to continually improve its system. Please include a copy of your capital and O&M budget, along with detailed descriptions and a funding breakdown of those projects. Submission of your utility’s capital improvement plan1 will suffice for this question, as long as it includes detailed descriptions of projects with a funding breakdown and any other information that will provide a clear picture of your utility’s near-term capital and O&M projects. To sustain system excellence, a utility should regularly reinvest in maintaining and improving its system.

If your utility does not have a formal capital improvement plan, your write-up should be similar to what would be submitted to your utility and/or city board or council for approval and to inform them of projects to be completed in the current budget year. The write-up should include associated costs and projected budgets for all projects conducted in the past two years or planned for the next two years.

1 Please refer to the RP3 Application Guide for more information, and for a detailed explanation of what should be addressed.

3. Near-Term Capital and O&M Projects:

Checklist Walkthrough3. Near-Term Capital and O&M Projects Continued:

A spreadsheet with project lists and estimated costs should be accompanied by detailed project descriptions. Suggested items that may be addressed in this section include:

Distribution line extensions, replacements, or upgrades Substation projects (new installation or upgrades) Transmission replacements or extensions Upgrades to utility software/hardware Equipment upgrades (trucks/buildings/etc.) Reconductoring projects General maintenance

You may use the area below to provide a list with descriptions and supporting information; however, separate attachments are highly encouraged.

Checklist Walkthrough1. Planning Study:

Has your utility performed an internal or external analysis or planning study to help evaluate the long-term needs of your utility’s system infrastructure?

Yes (Please attach the current executive summary or table of contents of

your utility’s analysis or planning study) No (Please provide a statement as to why your utility doesn’t perform a load

forecast)

If yes, check all items below that are addressed in the analysis or planning study:

Load forecast Contingency analysis (e.g., alternate feed) Fuse coordination/fault analysis Project identification Equipment age analysis Land and environmental analysis (e.g., SPCC, ROW) Capacity studies Other (please describe or include attachment: )

If yes, please indicate the time frame for your utility’s analysis or planning study:

Conducted Annually/Ongoing Process Three Year System Plan Five Year System Plan Ten Year System Plan Other: Year System Plan

4. Planning Study:

Checklist Walkthrough

1. Planning Study: Has your utility performed an internal or external analysis or planning study to help evaluate the long-term needs of your utility’s system infrastructure?

Yes (Please attach the current executive summary or table of contents of

your utility’s analysis or planning study) No (Please provide a statement as to why your utility doesn’t perform a load

forecast)

If yes, check all items below that are addressed in the analysis or planning study:

Load forecast Contingency analysis (e.g., alternate feed) Fuse coordination/fault analysis Project identification Equipment age analysis Land and environmental analysis (e.g., SPCC, ROW) Capacity studies Other (please describe or include attachment: )

If yes, please indicate the time frame for your utility’s analysis or planning study:

Conducted Annually/Ongoing Process Three Year System Plan Five Year System Plan Ten Year System Plan Other: Year System Plan

4. Planning Study Continued:

Review & Application Process

Applications due: September 30, 2014

• Preliminary check by APPA Staff: October 2014• Review Panel Taskforce: mid October 2014• Request for clarification/information is sent to applicants:

November 2014• Final Review: December 2014• Applicants receive notification of their application’s outcome:

January/February 2015• Official award/announcement: APPA’s Engineering and Operations

Conference in Sacramento, May 17-20, 2015

Where to start:1. Download the Application Packet

Visit PublicPower.org/RP3 and click on Application

2. Read the RP3 Application GuideAll forms, checklists, and RP3 questions are explained

3. Assign one point person that will compile the final submission

4. Complete checklists- Small utility may ask for help on specific sections from state

association or joint action agency- Large utility may divide the sections among different departments

5. Review final checklists and all forms and Submit

RP3 References

• Visit PublicPower.org/RP3• Call/email other RP3 designated utilities

Preview their application or just ask general questions (full list of designees is on the website)

• Email your questions to RP3@PublicPower.org• Call us: 202/467-2900, Engineering Services

– Webinars are recorded and can be accessed online

RP3 Webinar Series

• Reliability, Safety, Work Force Development, and System Improvement – Recordings of each webinar available at

www.publicpower.org/RP3

Questions?